When the UN makes a silly proclamation like this, poor countries line up to be a part of it. They hope that there will be help forthcoming. There won’t be of course, none of this is about them. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
As far as the appearance of this stamp, my initial take is that they wouldn’t present it like this 40 years on. On further reflection, of course they would. The children of the poor country appear friendly and the place name on the stamp tells all you need to know of their need. The international symbol of whatever tells you the help expected must come from outside.
Todays stamp is issue A64, a 5 cent stamp issued by the Bahamas on May 15th, 1979. It was a four stamp issue in various denominations. According to the Scott Catalog, the stamp is worth 25 cents whether it is mint or used.
UNESCO declared 1979 the “Year of the Child” in a declaration signed by then UN General Secretary Kurt Waldheim. The UN made the standard noises about childhood malnutrition and lack of access to education. What it really was about though was a pop concert held in New York City. Several prominent artists agreed to give the royalties from their then current single to the UN and signed a parchment scroll that they believed in UNESCO’s mission.
The concert, hosted by David Frost, was a bust. Elton John didn’t show up, well his autobiographical movie told us what his schedule was like then. The Bee Gees and Abba showed up but just lip synced “Too Much Heaven” and “Chiquita” Well the Bee Gees really singing it might well have been too much heaven. Rod Stewart really sang “Do Ya think I’m sexy”, apparently a question he really wanted answered. The concert raised less that one million dollars. The song royalties didn’t really pan out as they were time limited. The proceeds barely paid for the new statue honoring UNESCO, excuse me “the Family” at the Palace of Justice in Geneva. I did a stamp on the Palace of Justice here, https://the-philatelist.com/2017/11/07/the-league-gets-a-palace-but-so-late-they-just-leave-it-empty/ .
Could the year of the child really have been that shallow? Well not exactly though it took ten more years to happen. The year was part of the build up to the passing of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This again had nothing to do with poor children in the third world but rather was a template for rewriting laws in the west regarding sentences for juvenile criminals and even parents regarding spanking children. Most countries signed on but swore to ignore what they found intrusive. Over time however standards did change. The USA no longer executes for crimes committed by those under 18 and in Canada you can’t spank. India passed a law against child labour that they don’t yet enforce.
Well my drink is empty and I have time for a few more while waiting for the UN to help the third world child. Come again soon for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting. First published in 2020.